Composable infrastructure update system

ABSTRACT

A composable infrastructure update system includes a composable infrastructure management system coupled to a composable infrastructure system including composable infrastructure components. The composable infrastructure management system identifies workload solutions that are being provided by at least one of the composable infrastructure components and, for each workload solution, generates a respective workload solution catalog that identifies the at least one of the composable infrastructure components that are providing that workload solution. The composable infrastructure management system then receive a software update for a first composable infrastructure component, determines that the first composable infrastructure component is being used to provide at least two of the workload solutions, and schedules the performance of the software update for the first composable component in consideration of the at least two of the workload solutions.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates generally to information handlingsystems, and more particularly to providing updates to a composableinfrastructure information handling system.

As the value and use of information continues to increase, individualsand businesses seek additional ways to process and store information.One option available to users is information handling systems. Aninformation handling system generally processes, compiles, stores,and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or otherpurposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of theinformation. Because technology and information handling needs andrequirements vary between different users or applications, informationhandling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled,how the information is handled, how much information is processed,stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the informationmay be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in informationhandling systems allow for information handling systems to be general orconfigured for a specific user or specific use such as financialtransaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage,or global communications. In addition, information handling systems mayinclude a variety of hardware and software components that may beconfigured to process, store, and communicate information and mayinclude one or more computer systems, data storage systems, andnetworking systems.

Information handling systems may sometimes be provided as composableinfrastructure systems that treat compute, storage, and networkingdevices as pools of resources that may be provisioned as neededdepending on the needs of different workloads. As such, composableinfrastructure systems may provide solutions for workloads (“workloadsolutions”) from relatively large pools of compute, storage, andnetworking resources, which may enable multiple entities (e.g., systemadministrators) to compose and build workload solutions from the samepool of resources. Such workload solutions provided via composableinfrastructure systems may be logically discrete and, as such, theworkloads associated with them independent from each other. However,conventional converged infrastructure systems are configured to updatetheir pool of resources as integrated unit(s) without the considerationof the workload solutions they provide, which can raise some issues. Forexample, a converged infrastructure system may include multiple chassis,with each chassis including combinations of server systems and/orstorage systems, and conventional converged infrastructure systemupdates are often applied to all of the server systems and/or storagesystems in any particular chassis. However, as discussed above, anyparticular chassis may be used to provide at least a portion of multipledifferent and discrete workload solutions, and thus the entire-chassisupdate operations discussed above will result in downtime for multipledifferent and discrete workload solutions. As such, the lack ofconsideration and independent treatment of discrete workload solutionsby conventional converged infrastructure systems as part of theircomposable system lifecycle update operations can result inunavailability issues for workload solutions.

Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a composableinfrastructure update system that addresses the issues discussed above.

SUMMARY

According to one embodiment, an Information Handling System (IHS)includes a processing system; and a memory system that is coupled to theprocessing system and that includes instructions that, when executed bythe processing system, cause the processing system to provide acomposable infrastructure management engine that is configured to:identify a plurality of workload solutions that are being provided by atleast one of a plurality of composable infrastructure componentsincluded in a composable infrastructure system; generate, for each ofthe plurality of workload solutions, a respective workload solutioncatalog that identifies the at least one of the plurality of composableinfrastructure components in the composable infrastructure system thatare providing that workload solution; receive a first software updatefor a first composable infrastructure component that is included in theplurality of composable infrastructure components; determine that thefirst composable infrastructure component is being used to provide atleast two of the plurality of workload solutions; and schedule theperformance of the first software update for the first composablecomponent in consideration of the at least two of the plurality ofworkload solutions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of an InformationHandling System (IHS).

FIG. 2A is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of a composableinfrastructure update system.

FIG. 2B is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of the composableinfrastructure update system of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of a storagesystem that may be included in the composable infrastructure updatesystem of FIGS. 2A and 2B.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of a composableinfrastructure management system that may be included in the composableinfrastructure update system of FIGS. 2A and 2B.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a method forupdating a composable infrastructure system.

FIG. 6 is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of the composableinfrastructure update system of FIGS. 2A and 2B operating during themethod of FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of the composableinfrastructure update system of FIGS. 2A and 2B operating during themethod of FIG. 5.

FIG. 8 is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of the composableinfrastructure update system of FIGS. 2A and 2B operating during themethod of FIG. 5.

FIG. 9A is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of the composableinfrastructure update system of FIGS. 2A and 2B operating during themethod of FIG. 5.

FIG. 9B is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of the storagesystem of FIG. 3 operating during the method of FIG. 5.

FIG. 10A is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of thecomposable infrastructure update system of FIGS. 2A and 2B operatingduring the method of FIG. 5.

FIG. 10B is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of the storagesystem of FIG. 3 operating during the method of FIG. 5.

FIG. 11 is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of the composableinfrastructure update system of FIGS. 2A and 2B operating during themethod of FIG. 5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

For purposes of this disclosure, an information handling system mayinclude any instrumentality or aggregate of instrumentalities operableto compute, calculate, determine, classify, process, transmit, receive,retrieve, originate, switch, store, display, communicate, manifest,detect, record, reproduce, handle, or utilize any form of information,intelligence, or data for business, scientific, control, or otherpurposes. For example, an information handling system may be a personalcomputer (e.g., desktop or laptop), tablet computer, mobile device(e.g., personal digital assistant (PDA) or smart phone), server (e.g.,blade server or rack server), a network storage device, or any othersuitable device and may vary in size, shape, performance, functionality,and price. The information handling system may include random accessmemory (RAM), one or more processing resources such as a centralprocessing unit (CPU) or hardware or software control logic, ROM, and/orother types of nonvolatile memory. Additional components of theinformation handling system may include one or more disk drives, one ormore network ports for communicating with external devices as well asvarious input and output (I/O) devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse,touchscreen and/or a video display. The information handling system mayalso include one or more buses operable to transmit communicationsbetween the various hardware components.

In one embodiment, IHS 100, FIG. 1, includes a processor 102, which isconnected to a bus 104. Bus 104 serves as a connection between processor102 and other components of IHS 100. An input device 106 is coupled toprocessor 102 to provide input to processor 102. Examples of inputdevices may include keyboards, touchscreens, pointing devices such asmouses, trackballs, and trackpads, and/or a variety of other inputdevices known in the art. Programs and data are stored on a mass storagedevice 108, which is coupled to processor 102. Examples of mass storagedevices may include hard discs, optical disks, magneto-optical discs,solid-state storage devices, and/or a variety other mass storage devicesknown in the art. IHS 100 further includes a display 110, which iscoupled to processor 102 by a video controller 112. A system memory 114is coupled to processor 102 to provide the processor with fast storageto facilitate execution of computer programs by processor 102. Examplesof system memory may include random access memory (RAM) devices such asdynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), solid state memorydevices, and/or a variety of other memory devices known in the art. Inan embodiment, a chassis 116 houses some or all of the components of IHS100. It should be understood that other buses and intermediate circuitscan be deployed between the components described above and processor 102to facilitate interconnection between the components and the processor102.

Referring now to FIGS. 2A and 2B, an embodiment of a composableinfrastructure update system 200 is illustrated. In the examples below,the composable infrastructure update system 200 is provided by amulti-chassis composable infrastructure system that, in the illustratedembodiment, includes a first chassis 202, a second chassis 204, and athird chassis 206, with each of those chassis 202, 204, and 206 providedby four-slot chassis. For example, the portion of the multi-chassiscomposable infrastructure system provided in the first chassis 202includes composable infrastructure components provided by a serversystem 202 a in its first slot, a server system 202 b in its secondslot, a server system 202 c in its third slot, and a storage system 202d in its fourth; the portion of the multi-chassis composableinfrastructure system provided in the second chassis 204 includescomposable infrastructure components provided by a server system 204 ain its first slot, a server system 204 b, in its second slot a serversystem 204 c in its third slot, and a server system 204 d in its fourthslot; and the portion of the multi-chassis composable infrastructuresystem provided in the third chassis 206 includes composableinfrastructure components provided by a server system 206 a in its firstslot, a server system 206 b in its second slot, a storage system 206 cin its third slot, and a storage system 206 d in its fourth slot.

In an embodiment, any of the server systems 202 a-202 c, 204 a-204 d,206 a, and 206 b may be provided by the IHS 100 discussed above withreference to FIG. 1, and/or may include some or all of the components ofthe IHS 100, and in the examples below are each provided by a serverdevice housed in a server sled that is housed in the slot on thatchassis. In an embodiment, any of the storage systems 202 d, 206 c, and206 d may be provided by the IHS 100 discussed above with reference toFIG. 1, and/or may include some or all of the components of the IHS 100,and in the examples below each include a storage device sled that ishoused in the slot on that chassis and that each include a plurality ofstorage devices. However, while illustrated and discussed as provided bya multi-chassis composable infrastructure system with particularcomposable infrastructure components, one of skill in the art inpossession of the present disclosure will recognize that composableinfrastructure systems may be provided with a variety of composableinfrastructure components and/or composable infrastructure componentconfigurations (e.g., single chassis or different number of chassis thanthe three chassis in the illustrated embodiments, components other thanthe server systems and storage systems in the illustrated embodiments,chassis with more or fewer slots, etc.) while remaining within the scopeof the present disclosure as well.

With reference to FIG. 2A, the composable infrastructure update system200 is illustrated as including a composable infrastructure managementsystem 208 that is coupled to each of the portions of the composableinfrastructure system provided in the first chassis 202, the secondchassis 204, and the third chassis 206. In the illustrated embodiment,the composable infrastructure management system 208 is illustrated indotted lines to indicate that the composable infrastructure managementsystem 208 may be provided by one or more subsystems in any of the firstchassis 202, the second chassis 204, and the third chassis 206. Forexample, any or all of the first chassis 202, the second chassis 204,and the third chassis 206 may include a management subsystem (e.g., anintegrated DELL® Remote Access Controller (iDRAC) available from DELL®Inc. of Round Rock, Tex., United States; a Baseboard ManagementController (BMC); a Chassis Management Controller, a Management Module,and/or other management subsystems known in the art), and the couplingand configuration of the portions of the composable infrastructuresystem provided in the first chassis 202, the second chassis 204, andthe third chassis 206 may result in the management subsystems includedin the first chassis 202, the second chassis 204, and the third chassis206 electing a master management subsystem that will operate to providethe composable infrastructure management system 208, with the remainingmanagement subsystems operating as passive management subsystems thatare configured to take over management operations from the mastermanagement subsystem in the event it becomes unavailable. However, whilea specific example of a composable infrastructure management system 208has been described, one of skill in the art in possession of the presentdisclosure will recognize that other techniques for providing for themanagement of composable infrastructure system may be utilized inproviding the composable infrastructure management system 208 whileremaining within the scope of the present disclosure as well.

As illustrated, the composable infrastructure management system 208 iscoupled to a composable infrastructure update system 210. In anembodiment, the composable infrastructure update system 210 may beprovided by the IHS 100 discussed above with reference to FIG. 1, and/ormay include some or all of the components of the IHS 100, and inspecific examples may be provided by one or more server devices that areconfigured to operate as discussed below. With reference to FIG. 2B, thecomposable infrastructure update system 200 is illustrated as includinga network 212 that is coupled to each of the portions of the composableinfrastructure system provided in the first chassis 202, the secondchassis 204, and the third chassis 206, and that may be provided by aLocal Area Network (LAN), the Internet, and/or other networks that wouldbe apparent to one of skill in the art in possession of the presentdisclosure. Furthermore, as illustrated, one or more user systems 214may be coupled to the network 212 and configured to utilize thecomposable infrastructure system to perform workloads as discussedbelow. While a specific composable infrastructure update system 200 hasbeen illustrated and described, one of skill in the art in possession ofthe present disclosure will recognize that the composable infrastructureupdate system of the present disclosure may include a variety ofcomponents and component configurations while remaining within the scopeof the present disclosure as well.

Referring now to FIG. 3, an embodiment of a storage subsystem 300 isillustrated that may provide any (or a portion of) of the storagesystems 202 d, 206 c, and 206 d discussed above with reference to FIG.2. As such, the storage subsystem 300 may be provided by the IHS 100discussed above with reference to FIG. 1 and/or may include some or allof the components of the IHS 100. Furthermore, while illustrated anddiscussed as being provided by storage device sled including a pluralityof storage devices, one of skill in the art in possession of the presentdisclosure will recognize that the storage subsystem 300 discussed belowmay be provided with other devices and/or other configurations whileremaining within the scope of the present disclosure as well. In theillustrated embodiment, the storage subsystem 300 includes a chassis 302that houses the components of the storage system 300, only some of whichare illustrated below. In the examples provided herein, the chassis 302is described as a “storage device sled” that provided by each of thestorage systems 202 d, 206 c, and 206 d discussed above with referenceto FIG. 2, although other chassis will fall within the scope of thepresent disclosure as well. In the illustrated example, the chassis 302houses a plurality of storage devices (e.g., Solid States Drives (SSDs),Hard Disk Drives (HDDs), etc.), including the storage devices 304 a, 304b, 304 c, 304 d, 304 e, 304 f, 304 g, 304 h, 304 i, 304 j, 304 k, and304 l illustrated in FIG. 3, each of which may be coupled to thecomposable infrastructure management system 208 discussed above withreference to FIG. 2A. While a specific storage subsystem 300 has beenillustrated and described, one of skill in the art in possession of thepresent disclosure will recognize that storage systems of the presentdisclosure may include a variety of components and componentconfigurations while remaining within the scope of the presentdisclosure as well.

Referring now to FIG. 4, an embodiment of a composable infrastructuremanagement system 400 is illustrated that may provide the composableinfrastructure management system 208 discussed above with reference toFIG. 2A. As such, the composable infrastructure management system 400may be provided by the IHS 100 discussed above with reference to FIG. 1and/or may include some or all of the components of the IHS 100.Furthermore, while illustrated as a stand-alone composableinfrastructure management system 400, as discussed above, one of skillin the art in possession of the present disclosure will recognize thatthe functionality of the composable infrastructure management system 400discussed below may be provided by management subsystem(s) in thechassis (e.g., the first chassis 202, the second chassis 204, and/or thethird chassis 206 discussed above with reference to FIG. 2) used toprovide the composable infrastructure system of the present disclosure.In the illustrated embodiment, the composable infrastructure managementsystem 400 includes a management Input/Output (I/O) module 402 (whichmay be included in any of the chassis 202, 204, and 206 discussed abovewith reference to FIG. 2) that houses the components of the composableinfrastructure management system 400, only some of which are illustratedbelow. For example, the management I/O module 402 may house a processingsystem (not illustrated, but which may include the processor 102discussed above with reference to FIG. 1) and a memory system (notillustrated, but which may include the memory 114 discussed above withreference to FIG. 1) that is coupled to the processing system and thatincludes instructions that, when executed by the processing system,cause the processing system to provide a composable infrastructuremanagement engine 404 that is configured to perform the functionality ofthe composable infrastructure management engines and/or composableinfrastructure management systems discussed below.

The management I/O module 402 may also house a storage system (notillustrated, but which may include the storage 108 discussed above withreference to FIG. 1) that is coupled to the composable infrastructuremanagement engine 404 (e.g., via a coupling between the storage systemand the processing system) and that includes a composable infrastructuremanagement database 406 that is configured to store any of theinformation utilized by the composable infrastructure management engine404 discussed below. The management I/O module 402 may also house acommunication system 408 that is coupled to the composableinfrastructure management engine 404 (e.g., via a coupling between thecommunication system 408 and the processing system) and that may beprovided by a Network Interface Controller (NIC), wireless communicationsystems (e.g., BLUETOOTH®, Near Field Communication (NFC) components,WiFi components, etc.), and/or any other communication components thatwould be apparent to one of skill in the art in possession of thepresent disclosure. While a specific composable infrastructuremanagement system 400 has been illustrated, one of skill in the art inpossession of the present disclosure will recognize that composableinfrastructure management systems (or other devices operating accordingto the teachings of the present disclosure in a manner similar to thatdescribed below for the composable infrastructure management system 400)may include a variety of components and/or component configurations forproviding conventional management functionality, as well as thefunctionality discussed below, while remaining within the scope of thepresent disclosure as well.

Referring now to FIG. 5, an embodiment of a method 400 for updating acomposable infrastructure system is illustrated. As discussed below, thesystems and methods of the present disclosure provide for independenttreatment of discrete workload solutions when performing updates forcomposable infrastructure systems that provide those workload solutions,and thus in consideration of the Service Level Agreements (SLAs),downtime requirements, cluster aware update processes, and/or othercharacteristics/properties of those workload solutions. For example, acomposable infrastructure management system may maintain a masterinventory list of all of the updateable composable infrastructurecomponents in the composable infrastructure system, and use that masterinventory list to retrieve the latest applicable software updates forthose composable infrastructure components and store those softwareupdates in a local software repository. The composable infrastructuremanagement system may then utilize a composable infrastructure/workloadsolution data store to create a custom workload solution catalog foreach workload solution being provided by the composable infrastructuresystem, which may identify all of the composable infrastructurecomponents/hardware that are being utilized to provide any particularworkload solution, along with the software (e.g., a firmware version)being utilized by those composable infrastructure components/hardware.The workload solution catalogs may then be used along with the localsoftware repository to provide for the updating of software for anyparticular composable infrastructure component/hardware in a manner thatconsiders the multiple workload solutions it may be currently providing(i.e., on a per-workload solution andper-composable-infrastructure-component basis), thus providingcomposable infrastructure system updates in consideration of the SLAs,downtimes, cluster aware update processes, and/or othercharacteristics/properties of the workload solutions it provides.

The method 500 begins at block 502 where a composable infrastructuremanagement system identifies workload solutions provided by composableinfrastructure components in a composable infrastructure system. Withreference to FIG. 6, in some embodiments the composable infrastructuremanagement engine 404 in the composable infrastructure management system208 may include an inventory collector that is configured to retrieveidentification information from the composable infrastructure system.For example, the inventory collector provided by the composableinfrastructure management engine 404 in the composable infrastructuremanagement system 208 may operate to connect to the managementsubsystems included in each of the first chassis 202, the second chassis204, and the third chassis 306 in order to retrieve any of a variety ofinventory information about the converged infrastructure componentsincluded in those chassis. As discussed above, the composableinfrastructure management system 208 may be provided by anelected/master management subsystem in one of the first chassis 202, thesecond chassis 204, and the third chassis 306 and, as such, at block 502that master management subsystem may retrieve inventory informationabout the converged infrastructure components included in its chassis,as well as inventory information from the passive management subsystemsabout the converged infrastructure components included in theirrespective chassis.

As such, with reference to the example provided in FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 6,the inventory collector provided by the composable infrastructuremanagement engine 404 in the composable infrastructure management system208 may retrieve inventory information about the server systems 202a-202 c and the storage system 202 d in the first chassis 202, theserver systems 204 a-204 d in the second chassis 204, and the serversystems 206 a and 206 b and the storage systems 206 c and 206 d in thethird chassis 206. As discussed above, inventory information retrievedfor composable infrastructure components/hardware may include anidentification of that composable infrastructure component/hardware,current software (e.g., a current firmware version) being utilized bythat composable infrastructure component/hardware, a version of hardware(e.g., a version of a Dual Inline Memory Module (DIMM)), processormicrocode details, and/or a variety of other composable infrastructurecomponent/hardware inventory information that would be apparent to oneof skill in the art in possession of the present disclosure. In someembodiments, the inventory collector provided by the composableinfrastructure management engine 404 in the composable infrastructuremanagement system 208 may provide any inventory information retrieved atblock 502 in a composable infrastructure “master” catalog that is storedin the composable infrastructure management database 406, and that mayinclude any of a variety of details about the composable infrastructuresystem and/or its components provided in the first chassis 202, thesecond chassis 204, and the third chassis 306.

Furthermore, at block 502, the composable infrastructure managementengine 404 in the composable infrastructure management system 208 mayaccess a workload-solution-specific persona data store in the composableinfrastructure update system 210 in order to identify each workloadsolution being provided by the composable infrastructure system via itscomposable infrastructure components in the first chassis 202, thesecond chassis 204, and the third chassis 306. As will be appreciated byone of skill in the art in possession of the present disclosure, theworkload-solution-specific persona data store in the composableinfrastructure update system 210 may be generated during or followingthe creation of workload solutions for workloads run by the user systems214. As such, for each workload solution, workload-solution-specificinformation may be included in the workload-solution-specific personadata store that may identify each composable infrastructure component inthe composable infrastructure system that is being utilized to providethat workload solution. Thus, at block 502, the composableinfrastructure management engine 404 in the composable infrastructuremanagement system 208 may utilize the composable infrastructure “master”catalog that identifies the composable infrastructure components in thecomposable infrastructure system provided in the in the first chassis202, the second chassis 204, and the third chassis 306, and retrieveworkload-solution-specific information for each workload solution thatis being provided by those composable infrastructure components.

For example, with reference to FIG. 8, the workload-solution-specificinformation retrieved at block 502 may identify a first workloadsolution 800 that is provided compute resources 802 in the serversystems 202 a and 202 b that are included in the first chassis 202,storage resources 804 a in the storage system 202 d that is included inthe first chassis 202, and storage resources 804 b in the storage system206 c that is included in the third chassis 206. Continuing with theexample above, compute resources 802 for the first workload solution 800may be provided by the server devices included in the server systems 202a and 202 b, while storage resource 804 a and 804 b for the firstworkload solution 800 may be provided by storage devices in a storagedevice sled in the storage system 202 d, and storage devices in astorage device sled in the storage system 206 c. As will be appreciatedby one of skill in the art in possession of the present disclosure, theserver devices and storage devices utilized to provide the firstworkload solution 800 may include any of a variety of components thatutilize software (e.g., a firmware version) to operate. Furthermore, oneof skill in the art in possession of the present disclosure will alsorecognize that the first workload solution 800 may be provided for afirst workload having a particular SLA, downtime requirements, clusteraware update processes, and/or other workload characteristics/propertiesknown in the art.

Similarly, with reference to FIGS. 9A and 9B, theworkload-solution-specific information retrieved at block 502 mayidentify a second workload solution 900 that is provided computeresources 902 in the server system 202 c that is included in the firstchassis 202, and storage resources 904 in the storage system 206 d thatis included in the third chassis 206. Continuing with the example above,compute resources 902 for the second workload solution 900 may beprovided by the server device included in the server system 202 c, whilestorage resources 904 for the second workload solution 900 may beprovided by a first subset of storage devices in the storage device sledin the storage system 206 d. For example, with reference to FIG. 9B, thestorage devices 304 b and 304 c in the storage subsystem 300 (i.e., afirst subset of the storage devices 304 a-3041) included in the storagesystem 206 d may be utilized to provide storage resources 904 for thesecond workload solution 900. As will be appreciated by one of skill inthe art in possession of the present disclosure, the server devices andstorage devices utilized to provide the second workload solution 900 mayinclude any of a variety of components that utilize software (e.g., afirmware version) to operate. Furthermore, one of skill in the art inpossession of the present disclosure will also recognize that the secondworkload solution 900 may be provided for a second workload having aparticular SLA, downtime requirements, cluster aware update processes,and/or other workload characteristics/properties known in the art, andthose workload characteristics/properties may differ from the firstworkload discussed above.

Similarly, with reference to FIGS. 10A and 10B, theworkload-solution-specific information retrieved at block 502 mayidentify a third workload solution 1000 that is provided computeresources 1002 a in the server system 204 b that is included in thesecond chassis 204, compute resources 1002 b in the server system 206 bthat is included in the third chassis 206, and storage resources 1004 inthe storage system 206 d that is included in the third chassis 206.Continuing with the example above, compute resources 1002 a and 1002 bfor the third workload solution 1000 may be provided by the serverdevice included in the server system 204 b, and the server deviceincluded in the server system 206 b, while storage resources 1004 forthe third workload solution 1000 may be provided by a second subset ofstorage devices in the storage device sled in the storage system 206 d.For example, with reference to FIG. 10B, the storage devices 304 g, 304h, and 304 i in the storage subsystem 300 (i.e., a second subset of thestorage devices 304 a-3041) included in the storage system 206 d may beutilized to provide storage resources 1004 for the third workloadsolution 1000. As will be appreciated by one of skill in the art inpossession of the present disclosure, the server devices and storagedevices utilized to provide the third workload solution 1000 may includeany of a variety of components that utilize software (e.g., a firmwareversion) to operate. Furthermore, one of skill in the art in possessionof the present disclosure will also recognize that the third workloadsolution 1000 may be provided for a third workload having a particularSLA, downtime requirements, cluster aware update processes, and/or otherworkload characteristics/properties known in the art, and those workloadcharacteristics/properties may differ from the first workload and/or thesecond workload discussed above.

Similarly, with reference to FIG. 11, the workload-solution-specificinformation retrieved at block 502 may identify a fourth workloadsolution 1100 that is provided compute resources 1102 in the serversystem 204 c and the server system 204 d that are included in the secondchassis 204. Continuing with the example above, compute resources 1102for the fourth workload solution 1100 may be provided by the serverdevice included in the server system 204 c, and the server deviceincluded in the server system 204 d. As will be appreciated by one ofskill in the art in possession of the present disclosure, the serverdevices utilized to provide the fourth workload solution 1100 mayinclude any of a variety of components that utilize software (e.g., afirmware version) to operate. Furthermore, one of skill in the art inpossession of the present disclosure will also recognize that the fourthworkload solution 1100 may be provided for a fourth workload having aparticular SLA, downtime requirements, cluster aware update processes,and/or other workload characteristics/properties known in the art, andthose workload characteristics/properties may differ from the firstworkload, the second workload, and/or the third workload discussedabove. While four different workload solutions are illustrated anddescribed as being identified at block 502, one of skill in the art inpossession of the present disclosure will recognize that composableinfrastructure systems may provide any number of workload solutionsusing any of a variety of components, and the identification of thoseworkload solutions will fall within the scope of the present disclosureas well.

The method 500 then proceeds to block 504 where the composableinfrastructure management system generates a workload solution catalogfor each workload solution. In some embodiments, the composableinfrastructure management engine 404 in the composable infrastructuremanagement system 208 may include a workload solution catalog generatorthat is configured to utilize the workload-solution-specific informationfor each workload solution being provided by its composableinfrastructure system, along with the inventory information in thecomposable infrastructure “master” catalog that is stored in thecomposable infrastructure management database 406, in order to generateworkload solution catalog for each of the workloads provided by itscomposable infrastructure system that is specific to that workloadsolution and identifies the software utilized by the composableinfrastructure components in the composable infrastructure system thatare being used to provide that workload solution.

For example, with reference to the first workload solution 800 discussedabove with reference to FIG. 8, the workload solution catalog for thefirst workload solution 800 may identify software utilized by the serversystem 202 a (e.g., software utilized by any components in the serverdevices in the server system 202 a and the server system 202 b beingused to provide the compute resources 802 for the first workloadsolution 800), software utilized by the storage system 202 d (e.g.,software utilized by any components in and/or associated with thestorage devices in the first storage device sled in the storage system202 d (e.g., a storage expander card) being used to provide the storageresources 804 a for the first workload solution 800), and softwareutilized by the storage system 206 c (e.g., software utilized by anycomponents in and/or associated with the storage devices in the firststorage device sled in the storage system 206 c (e.g., a storageexpander card) being used to provide the storage resources 804 b for thefirst workload solution 800).

Similarly, with reference to the second workload solution 900 discussedabove with reference to FIGS. 9A and 9B, the workload solution catalogfor the second workload solution 900 may identify software utilized bythe server system 202 c (e.g., software utilized by any components inthe server device in the server system 202 c being used to provide thecompute resources 902 for the second workload solution 900), andsoftware utilized by the storage devices 304 b and 304 c in the storagesubsystem 300 of the storage system 206 d (e.g., software utilized bycomponents in and/or associated with the storage devices 304 b and 304in the storage device sled in the storage system 206 d (e.g., a storageexpander card) being used to provide the storage resources 904 for thesecond workload solution 900).

Similarly, with reference to the third workload solution 1000 discussedabove with reference to FIGS. 10A and 10B, the workload solution catalogfor the third workload solution 1000 may identify software utilized bythe server system 204 b (e.g., software utilized by components in theserver device in the server system 204 b being used to provide thecompute resources 1002 a for the third workload solution 1000), softwareutilized by the server system 206 b (e.g., software utilized bycomponents in the server device in the server system 206 b being used toprovide the compute resources 1002 b for the third workload solution1000), and software utilized by the storage devices 304 g, 304 h, and304 i in the storage subsystem 300 of the storage system 206 d (e.g.,software utilized by components in and/or associated with the storagedevices 304 g, 304 h, and 304 i in the storage device sled in thestorage system 206 d (e.g., a storage expander card) being used toprovide the storage resources 1004 for the second workload solution900).

Similarly, with reference to the fourth workload solution 1100 discussedabove with reference to FIG. 11, the workload solution catalog for thefourth workload solution 1100 may identify software utilized by theserver system 204 c (e.g., software utilized by components in the serverdevice in the server system 204 c being used to provide the computeresources 1102 for the fourth workload solution 1100) and softwareutilized by the server system 204 d (e.g., software utilized bycomponents in the server device in the server system 204 d being used toprovide the compute resources 1102 for the fourth workload solution1100).

The method 500 then proceeds to block 506 where the composableinfrastructure management system receives software updates for one ormore composable infrastructure component. With reference to FIG. 7, insome embodiments, at block 502 the composable infrastructure managementengine 404 in the composable infrastructure management system 208 mayretrieve software updates from the composable infrastructure updatesystem 210. For example, the composable infrastructure management engine404 in the composable infrastructure management system 208 may include acomposable infrastructure update portal that is configured to connect tothe composable infrastructure update system 210 to access anonline/network-based software repository that includes the latestsoftware updates/software packages for the composable infrastructurecomponents/composable infrastructure systems. As such, at block 502, thecomposable infrastructure update portal provided by the composableinfrastructure management engine 404 in the composable infrastructuremanagement system 208 may utilize the composable infrastructure “master”catalog that is stored in the composable infrastructure managementdatabase 406 to identify any software updates for the composableinfrastructure system and its components provided in the first chassis202, the second chassis 204, and the third chassis 306, retrieve thosesoftware updates, and store those software updates in a local softwarerepository that may be included in the composable infrastructuremanagement database 406.

The method 500 then proceeds to block 508 where the composableinfrastructure management system determines that the one or morecomposable infrastructure components are being used to provide multipleworkload solutions. In an embodiment, at block 508, the workloadsolution catalog generator provided by the composable infrastructuremanagement engine 404 in the composable infrastructure system 400 mayidentify chassis that include composable infrastructure components thatare being utilized to provide multiple different workload solutions, andmay mark those composable infrastructure components as “dependent”composable infrastructure components. In some examples, dependentcomposable infrastructure components may be identified in a sharedcomponent catalog that includes any composable infrastructure componentthat is utilized to provide two or more workload solutions. Continuingwith the examples above and with reference to the first workloadsolution 800 of FIG. 8, the second workload solution 900 of FIGS. 9A and9B, the third workload solution 1000 of FIGS. 10A and 10B, and thefourth workload solution 1100 of FIG. 11, the first chassis 202 includesthe server systems 202 a and 202 b that are being utilized to providethe compute resources 802 for the first workload solution 800, theserver system 202 c that is being utilized to provide the computeresources 902 for the second workload solution 900, and the storagesystem 202 d that is being utilized to provide the storage resources 804a for the first workload solution 800.

Similarly, the second chassis 204 includes the server system 204 b thatis being utilized to provide the compute resources 1002 a for the thirdworkload solution 1000, and the server systems 204 c and 204 d that arebeing utilized to provide the compute resources 1102 for the fourthworkload solution 1102. Similarly, the third chassis 206 includes theserver system 206 b that is being utilized to provide the computeresources 1002 b for the third workload solution 1000, the storagesystem 206 c that is being utilized to provide the storage resources 804b for the first workload solution 800, the storage devices 304 b and 304c in the storage subsystem 300 of the storage system 206 d that arebeing utilized to provide the storage resources 904 for the secondworkload solution 900, and the storage devices 304 g, 304 h, and 304 iin the storage subsystem 300 of the storage system 206 d that are beingutilized to provide the storage resources 1004 for the third workloadsolution 1000.

As such, in the illustrated embodiment, each of the composableinfrastructure components in the first chassis 202, the second chassis204, and the third chassis 206 may be identified as dependent composableinfrastructure components based on the need by the composableinfrastructure management system 208 to update entire chassis and eachof the first chassis 202, the second chassis 204, and the third chassis206 including at least two composable infrastructure components thatprovide different workload solutions. However, one of skill in the artin possession of the present disclosure will recognize how the teachingsof the present disclosure may be utilized with different updaterequirements (e.g., when updates may be applied to subsets of composableinfrastructure components in a chassis) while remaining within the scopeof the present disclosure as well. For example, in situations wheresoftware updates can be applied on a composable infrastructure componentbasis such as when a particular server device or storage device sled maybe updated independently, in the examples above the first storage devicesled in the storage system 206 d provided in the third chassis 206 maybe identified as a dependent composable infrastructure component due toit including subsets of storage devices providing different workloadsolutions.

The method 500 then proceeds to block 510 where the composableinfrastructure management system schedules the software update for theat least one composable infrastructure component in consideration of themultiple workloads. In some embodiments, the composable infrastructuremanagement engine 404 in the composable infrastructure management system400 may include a compliance check and update engine that is configuredto utilize the workload solution catalogs and the software updates inthe local software repository to determine how to perform softwareupdate(s) on its composable infrastructure components in its composableinfrastructure system. As such, at block 510, the compliance check andupdate engine provided by the composable infrastructure managementengine 404 in the composable infrastructure management system 208/400may use the workload solution catalogs to identify the current softwarebeing utilize by the composable infrastructure components in itscomposable infrastructure system to provide each workload solution, andcompare that current software to the software updates that are availablein its local software repository to identify composable infrastructurecomponents in its composable infrastructure system that require softwareupdates. In some embodiments, the compliance check and update engineprovided by the composable infrastructure management engine 404 in thecomposable infrastructure management system 208/400 may operate todisplay any composable infrastructure components in its composableinfrastructure system that require software updates to a user oradministrator of the composable infrastructure system, as well asprovide the ability to initiate the update of those composableinfrastructure components (e.g., via the composable infrastructureupdate portal discussed above.)

In the event the compliance check and update engine provided by thecomposable infrastructure management engine 404 in the composableinfrastructure management system 208/400 identifies a dependentcomposable infrastructure component that requires a software update(e.g., a first composable infrastructure component that providesresources for a first workload solution and that is included in achassis that includes a second composable infrastructure component thatprovides resources for a second workload solution; a first subset ofstorage device(s) that provide storage resources for a first workloadsolution and that are included in a storage device sled that includes asecond subset of storage device(s) that provide storage resources for asecond workload solution; etc.), the compliance check and update enginemay operate to perform a variety of operations to schedule the softwareupdate for that dependent composable infrastructure component inconsideration of the multiple workload solutions that will be effectedby that software update. In some embodiments, the operations to schedulethe software update for a dependent composable infrastructure componentin consideration of the multiple workload solutions that will beeffected by that software update may be performed automatically (e.g.,without contemporaneous instruction by a user or administrator of theconverged infrastructure system), or may be perfomed in response to aninstruction by a user or global administrator of the convergedinfrastructure system (e.g., provided via the composable infrastructureupdate portal discussed above by a global administrator that administersthe composable infrastructure system for local adminstrators whoadminister respective workloads.)

For example, in some embodiments the compliance check and update engineprovided by the composable infrastructure management engine 404 in thecomposable infrastructure management system 208/400 may identify adependent composable infrastructure component that requires a softwareupdate, and may schedule the software update for that dependentcomposable infrastructure component in consideration of the multipleworkload solutions that will be effected by that software update byidentifying a time during which each of the multiple workload solutionsare known to be in relatively low use (e.g., by reviewing usagestatistics for each of the workload solutions that will be effected(i.e., each of the workload solutions provided by the composableinfrastructure components in the same chassis that includes thedependent composable infrastructure component that requires the softwareupdate.))

In another example, in some embodiments the compliance check and updateengine provided by the composable infrastructure management engine 404in the composable infrastructure management system 208/400 may identifya dependent composable infrastructure component that requires a softwareupdate, and may notify users or other administrators (e.g., the globaland/or local administrators discussed above) of each of the multipleworkload solutions that will be effected by that software update inorder to schedule a workload solution downtime for updating thedependent composable infrastructure components that requires thesoftware update. In either example, in some embodiments, the compliancecheck and update engine provided by the composable infrastructuremanagement engine 404 in the composable infrastructure management system208/400 may determine that downtimes are not an option for anyparticular workload solution (e.g., based on SLAs or downtimerequirements), and may operate to migrate that workload solution suchthat it is provided by composable infrastructure components in adifferent chassis than the chassis that includes the composableinfrastructure component that requires the software update. However,while several examples have been provided, one of skill in the art inpossession of the present disclosure will recognize that a variety ofoperations may be performed to schedule software updates for a dependentcomposable infrastructure component in consideration of multipleworkload solutions that will be affected by that software update.

Continuing with the examples provided above, the first chassis 202includes the server systems 202 a and 220 b that provide the computeresources 802 for the first workload solution 800, the server system 202c that provides the compute resources 902 for the second workloadsolution 900, and the storage system 202 d that provides the storageresources 804 a for the first workload solution 800. As such, at block510, the compliance check and update engine provided by the composableinfrastructure management engine 404 in the composable infrastructuremanagement system 208/400 may determine that any of the server systems202 a, 202 b, and 202 c and/or the storage system 202 d require asoftware update, and may perform any of the operations discussed aboveto provide that software update in consideration of the first workloadsolution 800 and the second workload solution 900.

Similarly, continuing with the examples provided above, the secondchassis 204 includes the server system 204 b that provides the computeresources 1002 a for the third workload solution 1000, and the serversystems 204 c and 204 d that provide the compute resources 1102 for thefourth workload solution 1102. As such, at block 510, the compliancecheck and update engine provided by the composable infrastructuremanagement engine 404 in the composable infrastructure management system208/400 may determine that any of the server systems 204 b, 204 c, and204 d require a software update, and may perform any of the operationsdiscussed above to provide that software update in consideration of thethird workload solution 1000 and the fourth workload solution 1102.

Similarly, continuing with the examples provided above, the thirdchassis 206 includes the server system 206 b that provides the computeresources 1002 b for the third workload solution 1000, the storagesystem 206 c that provides the storage resources 804 b for the firstworkload solution 800, the storage devices 304 b and 304 c in thestorage subsystem 300 of the storage system 206 d that provide thestorage resources 904 for the second workload solution 900, and thestorage devices 304 g, 304 h, and 304 i in the storage subsystem 300 ofthe storage system 206 d that provide the storage resources 1004 for thethird workload solution 1000. As such, at block 510, the compliancecheck and update engine provided by the composable infrastructuremanagement engine 404 in the composable infrastructure management system208/400 may determine that any of the server systems 206 b, the storagesystem 206 c, and the storage devices 304 b, 304 c, 304 g, 304 h, and304 i require a software update, and may perform any of the operationsdiscussed above to provide that software update in consideration of thesecond workload solution 900 and the third workload solution 1000. Inparticular, at block 510, the compliance check and update engineprovided by the composable infrastructure management engine 404 in thecomposable infrastructure management system 208/400 may determine thatthe storage devices 304 b, 304 c, 304 g, 304 h, and 304 i and/or theirassociated components (e.g., a storage expander card) require a softwareupdate, and may perform any of the operations discussed above to providethat software update in consideration of the second workload solution900 and the third workload solution 1000.

Thus, systems and methods have been described that provide forindependent treatment of discrete workload solutions when performingupdates for composable infrastructure systems that provide thoseworkload solutions, and thus in consideration of the SLAs, downtimerequirements, cluster aware update processes, and/or othercharacteristics/properties of those workload solutions. For example, acomposable infrastructure management system may maintain a masterinventory list of all of the server devices and storage devices in thecomposable infrastructure system, and use that master inventory list toretrieve the latest applicable software updates for those server devicesand storage devices and store those software updates in a local softwarerepository. The composable infrastructure management system may thenutilize a composable infrastructure/workload solution data store tocreate a custom workload solution catalog for each workload solutionbeing provided by the composable infrastructure system, which mayidentify all of the server devices and/or storage devices (and/or any oftheir associated hardware) that are being utilized to provide anyparticular workload solution, along with the latest software (e.g., alatest firmware version) utilized by those server devices and storagedevices. The workload solution catalogs may then be used with the localsoftware repository to provide for the updating of software for anyparticular server device and/or storage device (and/or any of theirassociated hardware) in a manner that considers the multiple workloadsolutions it may be currently providing (i.e., on a per-workloadsolution and per-composable-infrastructure-component basis), thusproviding composable infrastructure system updates in consideration ofthe SLAs, downtime requirements, cluster aware update processes, and/orother characteristics/properties of the workload solutions it provides

Although illustrative embodiments have been shown and described, a widerange of modification, change and substitution is contemplated in theforegoing disclosure and in some instances, some features of theembodiments may be employed without a corresponding use of otherfeatures. Accordingly, it is appropriate that the appended claims beconstrued broadly and in a manner consistent with the scope of theembodiments disclosed herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A composable infrastructure update system,comprising: a composable infrastructure system including a plurality ofcomposable infrastructure components; and a composable infrastructuremanagement system that is coupled to the plurality of composableinfrastructure components in the composable infrastructure system,wherein the composable infrastructure management system is configuredto: identify a plurality of workload solutions that are being providedby at least one of the plurality of composable infrastructure componentsin the composable infrastructure system; generate, for each of theplurality of workload solutions, a respective workload solution catalogthat identifies the at least one of the plurality of composableinfrastructure components in the composable infrastructure system thatare providing that workload solution; receive a first software updatefor a first composable infrastructure component that is included in theplurality of composable infrastructure components; determine, based onthe respective workload solution catalogs, that the first composableinfrastructure component is being used to provide at least two of theplurality of workload solutions that will be affected by the firstsoftware update; schedule the performance of the first software updatefor the first composable component in consideration of the at least twoof the plurality of workload solutions; and update, based on thescheduling of the performance of the first software update, the firstcomposable component with the first software update in consideration ofthe at least two of the plurality of workload solutions.
 2. The systemof claim 1, wherein the plurality of composable infrastructurecomponents include at least one server system and at least one storagesystem.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein the first composableinfrastructure component is provided by a first storage system, andwherein a first workload solution included in the at least two of theplurality of workload solutions is provided by a first subset of aplurality of storage devices that are included in the first storagesystem, and wherein a second workload solution included in the at leasttwo of the plurality of workload solutions is provided by a secondsubset of the plurality of storage devices that are included in thefirst storage system.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein each respectiveworkload solution catalog for each respective workload solutionidentifies the current software being utilized by the at least one ofthe plurality of composable infrastructure components that are providingthat respective workload solution.
 5. The system of claim 4, wherein thecomposable infrastructure management system is configured to: determinethat the current software being utilized by the first composableinfrastructure component, which is providing a first workload solutionthat is included at least two of the plurality of workload solutions,should be updated with the first software update.
 6. The system of claim1, wherein the composable infrastructure management system is configuredto: receive respective software updates for each of the plurality ofcomposable infrastructure components, wherein the first software updatefor the first composable infrastructure component is included in therespective software updates for each of the plurality of composableinfrastructure components.
 7. An Information Handling System (IHS),comprising: a processing system; and a memory system that is coupled tothe processing system and that includes instructions that, when executedby the processing system, cause the processing system to provide acomposable infrastructure management engine that is configured to:identify a plurality of workload solutions that are being provided by atleast one of a plurality of composable infrastructure componentsincluded in a composable infrastructure system; generate, for each ofthe plurality of workload solutions, a respective workload solutioncatalog that identifies the at least one of the plurality of composableinfrastructure components in the composable infrastructure system thatare providing that workload solution; receive a first software updatefor a first composable infrastructure component that is included in theplurality of composable infrastructure components; determine, based onthe respective workload solution catalogs, that the first composableinfrastructure component is being used to provide at least two of theplurality of workload solutions that will be affected by the firstsoftware update; schedule the performance of the first software updatefor the first composable component in consideration of the at least twoof the plurality of workload solutions; and update, based on thescheduling of the performance of the first software update, the firstcomposable component with the first software update in consideration ofthe at least two of the plurality of workload solutions.
 8. The IHS ofclaim 7, wherein the plurality of composable infrastructure componentsinclude at least one server system and at least one storage system. 9.The IHS of claim 8, wherein the first composable infrastructurecomponent is provided by a first storage system, and wherein a firstworkload solution included in the at least two of the plurality ofworkload solutions is provided by a first subset of a plurality ofstorage devices that are included in the first storage system, andwherein a second workload solution included in the at least two of theplurality of workload solutions is provided by a second subset of theplurality of storage devices that are included in the first storagesystem.
 10. The IHS of claim 7, wherein each respective workloadsolution catalog for each respective workload solution identifies thecurrent software being utilized by the at least one of the plurality ofcomposable infrastructure components that are providing that respectiveworkload solution.
 11. The IHS of claim 10, wherein the composableinfrastructure management engine is configured to: determine that thecurrent software being utilized by the first composable infrastructurecomponent, which is providing a first workload solution that is includedat least two of the plurality of workload solutions, should be updatedwith the first software update.
 12. The IHS of claim 7, wherein thecomposable infrastructure management engine is configured to: receiverespective software updates for each of the plurality of composableinfrastructure components, wherein the first software update for thefirst composable infrastructure component is included in the respectivesoftware updates for each of the plurality of composable infrastructurecomponents.
 13. The IHS of claim 7, wherein the scheduling theperformance of the first software update for the first composablecomponent in consideration of the at least two of the plurality ofworkload solutions includes: scheduling a downtime for the at least twoof the plurality of workload solutions.
 14. A method for updating acomposable infrastructure, comprising: identifying, by a composableinfrastructure management system, a plurality of workload solutions thatare being provided by at least one of a plurality of composableinfrastructure components included in a composable infrastructuresystem; generating, by the composable infrastructure management systemfor each of the plurality of workload solutions, a respective workloadsolution catalog that identifies the at least one of the plurality ofcomposable infrastructure components in the composable infrastructuresystem that are providing that workload solution; receiving, by thecomposable infrastructure management system, a first software update fora first composable infrastructure component that is included in theplurality of composable infrastructure components; determining, based onthe respective workload solution catalogs, by the composableinfrastructure management system, that the first composableinfrastructure component is being used to provide at least two of theplurality of workload solutions that will be affected by the firstsoftware update; scheduling, by the composable infrastructure managementsystem, the performance of the first software update for the firstcomposable component in consideration of the at least two of theplurality of workload solutions; and updating, by the composableinfrastructure management system and based on the scheduling of theperformance of the first software update, the first composable componentwith the first software update in consideration of the at least two ofthe plurality of workload solutions.
 15. The method of claim 14, whereinthe plurality of composable infrastructure components include at leastone server system and at least one storage system.
 16. The method ofclaim 15, wherein the first composable infrastructure component isprovided by a first storage system, and wherein a first workloadsolution included in the at least two of the plurality of workloadsolutions is provided by a first subset of a plurality of storagedevices that are included in the first storage system, and wherein asecond workload solution included in the at least two of the pluralityof workload solutions is provided by a second subset of the plurality ofstorage devices that are included in the first storage system.
 17. Themethod of claim 14, wherein each respective workload solution catalogfor each respective workload solution identifies the current softwarebeing utilized by the at least one of the plurality of composableinfrastructure components that are providing that respective workloadsolution.
 18. The method of claim 14, further comprising: determining,by the composable infrastructure management system, that the currentsoftware being utilized by the first composable infrastructurecomponent, which is providing a first workload solution that is includedat least two of the plurality of workload solutions, should be updatedwith the first software update.
 19. The method of claim 14, furthercomprising: receiving, by the composable infrastructure managementsystem, respective software updates for each of the plurality ofcomposable infrastructure components, wherein the first software updatefor the first composable infrastructure component is included in therespective software updates for each of the plurality of composableinfrastructure components.
 20. The method of claim 14, wherein thescheduling the performance of the first software update for the firstcomposable component in consideration of the at least two of theplurality of workload solutions includes: scheduling, by the composableinfrastructure management system, a downtime for the at least two of theplurality of workload solutions.